4 Myths about the female cycle - Debunked
For years and years women have been fed false information regarding their cycle, leading to women becoming out of touch with their own unique beings as we force ourselves to understand this way of life that is made by and created for men - unfortunately ;(
Luckily, there has been an uprising in which women are starting to delve deeper into cycle studying, and we are becoming more in tune with our feminine as people start to expose the truths of the feminine powers within us.
It is not spoken about enough, but there really is a deep spiritual connection to the womb and the feminine, women are the givers of life, we have the ability to carry and nurture a whole other being, and that is not something to be ignored. Since the start of time, the womb has been a portal to life, and every woman has the power to connect with this energy inside of her. The womb is the space of life, and when we learn to nurture it - we can truly tap into our best selves as we worship and protect our feminine powers.
So if you are looking to get in touch with your feminine and embrace what you have been blessed with - here are 4 cycle myths to free yourself from and how to change your perception of them.
1) Your cycle is 30 days long
No no no. Whilst this might be true for some women, it is wrong to teach all women to look at their cycle through a 30 day window. Our cycles can range from anything from 25-35 days and it is hard to tell how long someone's cycle really is as a lot of us have hormonal issues that make it unclear when we are in certain parts of our cycle. The best way to understand your personal cycle better is to ignore the outside information. After your period, take notes of how your body feels every day until your next period, notice changes in your mood and your body. Are you experiencing bloating, change in discharge, different cravings? Keep a diary and see the patterns, only you can know how you truly feel, it's innately in us to be spiritual and in tune with our bodies, so allow yourself to discover how you truly feel. If there are areas of concern, seek professional advice from a doctor or healer of your choice. But never pigeonhole yourself to believe that you are “abnormal” for having a longer or shorter cycle. Every woman is unique, and you should not feel there is something wrong with you unless you genuinely notice a change in yourself or something is troubling you.
2) Our period is the most important part of our cycle
Up for debate, but arguably the most important part of our cycle is ovulation. Of course, we need all four phases to be thriving and surviving, but without ovulation - something is wrong. We need a strong ovulatory phase to produce the right hormone to conceive. Now, even if you arent looking to have children, it is still important that you have a healthy ovulation phase as it is supposedly the “peak” of the month, so we want to feel our best selves! Ovulation helps us women work at our best potential, so without this beautiful phase - we will struggle in a constant humdrum existence. You can find out whether you are ovulating by looking at the natural signs your body gives, but if you don't experience a significant change throughout the month, you can do fertility tests and hormone tests that will inform you on your levels and ensure you are in good health.
3) It is normal to be in pain during your period
Although statistically, 80% of women suffer with period cramps during their lifetime, it shouldn't be brushed over that we should expect pain to be a normal side effect of menstruating. Before our menstrual phase, we need to be preparing our body to make our period as pain-free as possible. We do this by eating nutrient dense food, getting enough sleep and slowing down our physical activities. But if the pain is causing you a lot of trouble, you should not be expected to “put up with it”, a common theme in this blog is understanding your own body. So if you know that the period cramps are too much, do not be silenced! Be persistent with your medical advisor. Unfortunately, a lot of women are undiagnosed with PCOS or Endometriosis, so you should ALWAYS seek advice when something is wrong, do not put up with the pain because it has been normalised in society.
4) Blaming your mood swings and energy crashes on “that time of month”
It is infuriating that women are made to feel weak and silly when they cannot perform at 100% and society’s response is “oh it’s because she's on her period” as if it's some sort of excuse. Every single month, our bodies go through such an array of emotions, energy levels and hormone fluctuations that men cannot relate to. Men work on a circadian rhythm every single day, their energy peaks and troughs at around about the same times consistently. That's why men are typically more disciplined when it comes to physical fitness and work load, as they dont experience the change in energy like women do. You need to learn to embrace the cycle phases, when you're ovulating and you feel at your best - ask for a promotion, aim for personal bests at the gym, go on a date! And when you are in your luteal phase, slow down a bit ! Journal, practice yoga, be kinder and softer to yourself. When we take away this guilt of being “lazy” due to our periods, we live a better, more fulfilled life. Taking ample time to rest and recover ensures we can perform at our best when our bodies allow us to.
NOTE
I hope this blog post has made you feel seen and heard, us women are suppressed to think our periods are shameful and an excuse to be weak when in fact it is the complete opposite. Learn to love your womb, your feminine energy and the powers you hold. The best thing we can do is learn about our individual bodies, doing so will free you from judgment as only you know what is right and what is wrong for you. Take back your feminine power - learn to love every phase of your cycle as it is your superpower!
